At the board’s previous session, on January 20, the panel dismissed the other objection that Joshua Young filed, thereby upholding Murphy’s motion to strike and dismiss. The Electoral Board had addressed the men’s objections as two separate hearings during that one session.

Young, who is running for mayor as a Democrat write-in candidate, had not included his residential address on the letter, as required. Murphy had cited Pochie v. Cook County Officers Electoral Board and Morton v. State Officers Electoral Board in her motion to strike and dismiss that objection.

At heart of Schwarte’s objection was that Rauschkolb originally had filed nomination papers to run as a Democrat, as did Young. Boulds, though, rejected both men’s nomination papers because they did not contain the required receipt showing they submitted a Statement of Economic Interests to the Madison County Clerk’s Office.

After the rejection, Rauschkolb collected signatures on new petitions and submitted nomination papers to run for mayor as an independent. That second filing prompted Young and Schwarte to file their objections that allege “party switching.”

Schwarte’s objection letter to Boulds cites the case of Rudd v. Lake County Electoral Board (2016) that upheld a circuit court and Lake County Electoral Board’s decisions that Dr. Thomas Rudd was ineligible to run for Lake County coroner in last November’s general election. Someone had filed an objection to his nominating papers to run as a Democrat in the spring 2016 primary, prompting Rudd to withdraw the paperwork and later tried to run in the general election as an independent.

The Alton Electoral Board’s decision and order agrees with that case:

“The Rudd case clearly affirms the intention of the state statute 10 ILCS 5/10-43. Accordingly, since Danny Rauschkolb filed a statement of candidacy to run as a Democrat for office of mayor of the city of Alton in the primary to be held in February 2017, he may not file a statement of candidacy as a candidate of a different established party or as a (sic) independent candidate for the office of mayor of the city of Alton at the election immediately following the primary, that being the election of April 4, 2017. The fact that Danny Rauschkolb was not certified to run as a candidate for the Democratic nomination for the primary to be held in February 2017 (nor did anyone else receive certification) is not material or relevant based on the holding in the Rudd case.”

Schwarte’s letter also references the Storer v. Brown case of 1974 before the U.S. Supreme Court:

“(A disqualification law) protects the direct primary process by refusing to recognize independent candidates who do not make early plans to leave a party and take the alternative course to the ballot. It works against independent candidacies prompted by short-range political goals, pique or personal quarrel. It is also a substantial barrier to a party fielding an ‘independent’ candidate to capture and bleed off votes in the general election that might well go to another party.”

On Jan. 13, Murphy had argued that Schwarte simply referenced the cases and did not “state his interest or articulate the objection, a reason for his objection.” Murphy claimed Schwarte was leaving it up to the board to assume as to what he was objecting.

Thursday’s decision and order, though, says Schwarte sufficiently stated his objection and his “interest” by citing the Rudd case as precedence.

After Thursday’s hearing, Murphy and Rauschkolb said they oppose Corporation Counsel Jim Schrempf advising the Electoral Board because he had contributed to incumbent Mayor Brant Walker’s campaign, as Walker is running for a second term. Schrempf declined a reporter’s request for comment on their concerns about his personal, $500 contribution to Citizens for Brant Walker on Oct. 11; and $250 from his firm of Schrempf, Kelly, Napp and Darr on Nov. 6, 2013.

On January 20, Murphy and Rauschkolb had said they had no objections to the members comprising the board, but Schrempf is not on the panel. After the hearing Thursday, they said they objected to Schrempf meeting privately, one-on-one with the members to discuss facts of the case, law and to answer their questions.

“This should have been in an open session, it doesn’t look appropriate,” Murphy said. Schrempf said on January 20 that the Open Meetings Act applies to the board, so it would be a violation of that law for him to meet privately with more than one member at a time.

The double hearing originally had been scheduled for January 5, but was continued until January 13 at Murphy’s request. That session was postponed because City Hall was closed in anticipation of an ice storm, and finally held January 20. That session was continued to Thursday, for a vote only.

After the hearing, Schwarte said he does not regret filing his objection, and he did not do it in behalf of any candidate. “I entered into this a little naive, I didn’t realize how long it would take,” he said. “The rule of law is important.”

Young also attended the hearing. “This is a clear example of the law upholding, I think justice was done,” he said.

Mayoral candidate Scott Dixon subsequently issued a statement to The Telegraph on the decision:

“The Alton Electoral Board did the right thing today, by carefully considering this issue, and voting in accordance with Illinois election law. Pat Schwarte is a good man who always does what he thinks is the right thing to do, and the people of Alton owe him a huge debt of gratitude for helping to preserve the integrity of the election. I fully support what Pat did. This decision obviously helps me, and hurts Dan, but really, that is irrelevant. I have nothing against Dan, and it was his right as a candidate and citizen of Alton to test this law by appearing with his attorney before the electoral board. Like I said in a previous letter to the editor on this issue, this is what democracy is all about. The law is the law, and in this case, the law is there for a good reason, and it could not be clearer on this issue.”